I went into work at beauty shop ... and came home with my newborn baby

Elaine Keogh
– 19 January 2013 04:00 PM

SAY hello to beautiful baby Paige, who decided to make her entrance into the world in under 30 minutes while her mum was at work.

Luckily for Paige, her mum Dawn Kierans works in a hair and beauty supplies shop, so there were plenty of clean towels and hot water to hand.

New scissors were also available so Paige's dad, Mal Britton, could cut the umbilical cord.

Paige arrived a week before Dawn was due to go on maternity leave from Deegan's Hair and Beauty Shop in Drogheda.

"The labour lasted 29 minutes," said Dawn as she cuddled her third daughter. "I was in the shop and labour just started.

"There were no niggly pains or twinges; it was full-on labour with contractions. It started at 10.30am and she was born at 10.59."

Dawn's father, Tony, dropped into the shop to see her just as the contractions began.

She told him to go and get her hospital bag: her partner, Mal, was making his way to the shop after visiting his mother.

It quickly became clear that Tony didn't have time to get her bag and instead talked to hospital staff by phone as the baby made rapid progress towards delivery.

brilliant

Dawn was helped to deliver Paige by her friend Caroline Lynch who is herself pregnant and who had called into the shop to see how she was.

"Caroline came into the back with me and helped. It was over and done with so fast I was in shock.

"I was scared because I knew I wouldn't make it to the hospital on time. Caroline was brilliant and Mal came in the door as she was born. The cord was around her neck and we were worried. He asked for a scissors to cut it."

Her boss Stephen arrived just in time to hear Caroline shout 'the head is out'.

"I nearly walked straight back out of the shop," he joked.

Mal said: "I was literally in the door and I laughed and said, 'Come on, Dawn'.

"Next thing I saw her on the floor. The baby let out a wee cry and we knew she was grand. I saw the cord around her neck and called for a pair of scissors.

"There were shouts for towels and for a scissors, and we had them all in stock," laughed Stephen.

Baby Paige was wrapped in a new towel and when the paramedics arrived two minutes later they put her in a thermal blanket.

"They were calm and professional and reassured everyone," Mal added.

"It was probably one of the best places outside the hospital to have her, really," laughed Dawn yesterday.